Nigerian
Governor Zulum: I criticise troops to help them improve
Babagana Zulum, governor of Borno state, says he is critical of the Nigerian army so that they can improve in their fight against insurgency. Zulum said this on Thursday when he commissioned the Tukur Buratai Institute for War and Peace, located in Biu local government area of the state. The institute is named after Tukur Buratai, chief of army staff. The governor has come down hard on the army in recent times. In January, he accused troops of extorting road users. He also threatened to replace soldiers with local hunters if they are unable to secure Baga following the attack on his convoy in June. While the attack was believed to have been carried out by Boko Haram insurgents, Zulum accused the military officials of sabotage, alleging that they were the ones who attacked him. The military...
Central bank, bankers’ committee to support airlines, media with special facilities
The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) and the Bankers’ Committee have unanimously agreed to extend special facilities to Nigerian-registered airlines and the media industry in the country to enable them adequately address the negative impact of the COVID-19 pandemic. The CBN Director Corporate Communications, Mr Isaac Okorafor, made this known in a statement in Abuja on Tuesday. Okorafor said the CBN Governor, Mr Godwin Emefiele, announced this while addressing the Bank Chief Executives at the bi-monthly virtual meeting of the Bankers’ Committee on Tuesday. Emefiele urged the banks to do all within their powers to support airlines in the country, noting that such support was critical to helping the industry recover from the economic crisis triggered by the COVID-19 pandemic. Similarly, the ape...
UK education academy confers prestigious senior fellowship on Nigerian born academic
A UK-based Nigerian academic from Osun State and Chairman of TEXEM UK, Dr Alim Abubakre has been awarded UK’s prestigious Senior Fellowship of the Advanced Higher Education Academy (HEA). According to a statement on Tuesday from TEXEM’s website signed by Caroline Lucas, this followed a rigorous review of Abubakre’s impressive record of accomplishment of contributing to advancing Executive Development in the UK, Africa and North America. He was subsequently adjudged worthy and conferred with the UK’s prestigious Senior Fellowship of the HEA which is the UK’s Gold standard in pedagogy. The senior HEA fellowship is also a UK national recognition for leadership, excellence, expertise and commitment to professionalism in teaching and learning. Abubakre has been able to present a thorough unders...
Nigerian government borrowed food from ECOWAS – ministry
Federal Minister of Power, Works and Housing The Nigerian Government has disclosed that it borrowed over 5,000 metric tonnes of grain from ECOWAS to feed citizens. This was disclosed by the Minister of State for Agriculture and Rural Development, Mustapha Baba-Shehuri, on Monday. He stated this while receiving the 3,999 tonnes of cereals donated to Nigeria by ECOWAS. According to Shehuri, “The Government of the Federal Republic of Nigeria loaned 5,000MT of assorted grains from ECOWAS Stock which was agreed to be paid back on grain for grain basis. “Modalities had been put in place to replace the ECOWAS Stock before the advent of COVID-19 Pandemic. That notwithstanding, I can assure you that the stock will be replaced in due course.” He said to tackle the food crisis in the West African Sub...
Benue honours Super Falcons star Francisca Ordega
Benue State government has bestowed its honour on her illustrious daughter, Super Falcons star, Francisca Ordega. Ordega was honoured as the Most Outstanding Female Footballer in the state. The award was organised by Benue Coalition for Good governance. Congratulations to me… I am honored for being recognized by my people of Benue state…as the Most Outstanding Female Footballer in Benue State…The award was organized by Benue Coalition for Good governance..proudly Benue/Tiv..thanking you all🙏🏼🙏🏼 pic.twitter.com/hjsP6qIhaL — ordega francisca (@OrdegaF) August 24, 2020 Ordega is however overwhelmed with this honour as she stated on her twitter handle: ‘Proudly Benue/Tiv..thanking you all🙏🏼🙏🏼’ Ordega has been forced to postpone he...
Ghana: Closure of Nigerians’ shops xenophobic – Senate minority leader
Senate Minority Leader, Enyinnaya Abaribe, has accused Ghana’ of targeting Nigerians. He said the Ghanian government was carrying out xenophobic acts against citizens of its long-time ally. Abaribe’s reaction was contained in a statement in Abuja on Sunday by his spokesman, Uchenna Awom. Recently, Ghanaian officials sealed shops belonging to Nigerian traders in Accra over $1million equity stipulated by the Ghana Investment Promotions Council. Abaribe told Ghana to “prove us wrong by putting a halt to further closure of the shops and attacks on Nigerians in compliance to the Economic Community of West African Countries (ECOWAS) protocol”. The lawmaker called the closure of business a willful denigration of sub-regional brotherhood and one that is in clear conflict with ECOWAS protocol. “So ...
West African delegation ‘very hopeful’ after meeting Mali junta
A West African delegation visiting Mali to push for a speedy return to civilian rule following a coup said it was “very hopeful” on Saturday after meeting with the country’s military junta and the president it ousted. The head of the delegation from the regional Ecowas bloc, former Nigerian president Goodluck Jonathan, said that detained Malian president Ibrahim Boubacar Keita was doing relatively well. “We saw him, he’s very fine,” said Jonathan, who had earlier met for half an hour with the soldiers who seized power on Tuesday, including new strongman Colonel Assimi Goita. Jonathan told AFP that negotiations were going well and he was “very hopeful”. Rebel soldiers seized Keita and other leaders after a mutiny on Tuesday, dealing another deep blow to a country already struggling with a b...
Journalists’ forum tasks Nigerian government on fight against human trafficking
Mr Ajibola Abayomi, President, Journalists International Forum For Migration (JIFORM), has urged the Federal Government to evolve stricter measures in the fight against human trafficking. Abayomi who made the call in a statement on Thursday in Abuja, also urged the government to continue the ongoing evacuation mission beyond the Aug. 25 deadline. According to him, such extension will enable the evacuation of more Nigerians, especially women who are currently stranded in foreign countries. He said that the group had already written the Foreign Affairs Ministry and other relevant agencies, alerting them of the need to continue the rescue exercise. Abayomi said that the letter also contained detailed information about stranded Nigerian migrants to ensure easy identification and evacuation. “T...
Nigeria confirms 476 new virus cases
The Nigeria Center for Disease Control (NCDC), has confirmed 476 new cases of the Coronavirus disease (COVID-19) outbreak in the country. The NCDC confirmed this through its official Twitter handle on Thursday. The agency said that seven deaths were recorded in the country. NCDC said that till date, 50,964 cases have been confirmed, 37,569, discharged and 992 deaths recorded in 36 states and the Federal Capital Territory. According to it, the 476 new cases are reported from 18 states. It said that Lagos has the highest figures of 235 cases, followed by FCT with 44 cases. Others were Kaduna (41), Borno (33), Plateau (28), Abia (13), Edo (13), Rivers (12), Imo (11), Oyo (10), Kano (9), Kwara (7), Enugu (5), Katsina (5), Gombe (4), Ogun (4), Nasarawa (1), and Zamfara (1). The NCDC stated that...
PTF: Nigerians poor attitude towards virus testing is worrisome
The Presidential Taskforce, PTF, on COVID-19, on Thursday, decried the poor attitude of Nigerians towards COVID-19 testing and safety protocols, saying, despite the increased capacity, sample collection remains very low. Expressing displeasure during the weekly COVID-19 briefing in Abuja, the Chairman of the Presidential Taskforce, Boss Mustapha, further lamented that the numbers of local governments, LGAs, that are hot spots have increased from 16 to 20 and regrettably happened to be a hard-to-reach area. “Initially, we have 10 local government areas that are hot spots which eventually increased to 16 but now we have 20 LGAs that are hot spots. Regrettably, this recent local government is more remote. “Presently, Nigeria now has the capacity to test 15,000 people daily but sadly, what we ...
INEC: No going back on Edo, Ondo elections
National Commissioner and chairman information and Voters Education Committee of the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, Festus Okoye, has said there is no alternative to the peaceful conduct of the governorship election in Edo and Ondo states. He said failure to do so will leave both states with constitutional logjam that would be difficult to resolve. At a sensitisation forum for the media in Benin, Okoye noted that political parties must eschew violence, use of intemperate, inflammatory language designed to incite violence. He said, “Political parties and all the critical stakeholders in the electoral process must see the conduct of these elections as a national project that must be executed in strict compliance with all the safety protocols. “There is no alternative to the...
Group lauds governments, Nigerians on fight against coronavirus
The Woman and Half Initiative (WAH), a group of successful professional women, has hailed the efforts of governments and Nigerians to contain the Novel Coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic. Mrs Chile Udemgba, the WAH Promoter, made the commendation in a statement to newsmen in Lagos. She expressed joy that Nigeria was among the countries which recorded the lowest COVID-19 cases. “As the society gradually evolves from a crippling lockdown occasioned by the COVID-19 pandemic, we celebrate the effusive Nigerian spirit which has seen us all wrestle this pandemic down with our country recording some of the lowest incidences in the world,” she said. Udemgba noted that the lockdown caused many economies and businesses to collapse, thereby hindering progress. According to her, the group would celebrate...